One of the great things about Igloo coolers is that they manufacture them locally in the USA. At the back of the cooler are 2 accessory slots that come with fish rod/umbrella holders. The 1-inch drain plug is threaded meaning you can attach a hose to it and drain your cooler into the garden or anywhere else away from where the cooler is. It can be clipped closed and has seals to keep the water out so rain, hail or shine your items will stay dry.
The Trailmate is a total monster when it comes to features and we needed to do it justice because this is not something you see everyday. These two materials won’t rust, break or fail apart; they’re meant to hold the coolers’ parts together regardless of the surrounding environment for a cooler with a longer life span than expected. Let’s start with the one thing that you may have already heard and read about many times before considering a portable cooler in the first place; roto-molded construction. Not only that, the set of features given to this cooler is something we guarantee that you won’t find anywhere else.
When you click on links to buy products we may earn money to support our work. Learn how we create the world’s most carefully tested and objective gear reviews on our About page. This was a cooler I had my eye on for years and finally snagged one to test out. The cooler caught my eye with the unique styling and the large wheels in the back. Why we didn’t quite reach the 4-day mark that Igloo suggested, it wasn’t far off. Most people aren’t going to use this much ice as it would take up way too much valuable storage volume.
As for the hardware, it is made of which is also rust-resistant and extremely tough. Seeing how the primary way to transport this cooler is by rolling it, having a handle that is designed to allow you to tow or push it is essential. This handle is a special Igloo Glide Design that allows you to pull your load up to 50% easier. This is accomplished by the added leverage that you get from the handle.
Check out the Igloo Sportsman Cooler vs Yeti Tundra comparison to find out how these products from two industry-leading brands compare to each other. We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you. The protruding design of the inside of the drain is baffling to us, and is the least effective drain of any cooler we tested.
But for someone who is after a truly unique, mobile, and well-performing igloo trailmate chest, the asking price is more than fair. More Videos⇒Ice retention is not the only factor to consider in a cooler. In the case of the Igloo Trailmate we really wanted to put the wheels to the test. Some of the smaller, cheaper wheeled coolers utilized significantly smaller wheels which are incapable of traversing sand and thick gravel. We were pleasantly surprised when the Trailmate glided through the sand without ease. Granted, the sand we were testing in was not the sugar sand of Siesta Key, but it was a close second.
However, Vibe’s wheeled cooler is quite something with its roto-molded design, color variety and the fact that it can hold up to 70 qt. Yeti’s wheeled cooler the Tundra Haul is many people’s favorite cooler with wheels given what it has to offer; it’s roto-molded, bear proof, durable and it is 100% functional. In terms of build quality, all of Yeti’s hard coolers are roto-molded and bear proof including the wheeled ones. The Trailmate all-terrain cooler on the other is neither roto-molded nor bear proof which could be compensated if we take into consideration all the awesome features we already mentioned. Igloo coolers are insulated, and as such, each container efficiently protects against heat and cold elements. These coolers are not designed to heat or cool an object, but with their foam insulation, your Igloo keeps the temperature at the same level for an extended period of time.
The strong metal igloo water cooler arm is also high quality as is the entire cooler. While it lacks the large feature set of the Trailmate (it’s basically just a box on wheels) it makes up for it in quality. It has cup holders in the lid and similar ice retention to the Trailmate. Overall this is just a good cooler for a fraction of the price.
We were initially pumped about this array of features, though our excitement lessened throughout testing. The plug leash – a great feature for any cooler – is attached in a way that we had a pretty hard time unscrewing the actual plug, and typically had to use two hands to accomplish. The extra boxes and fishing rod holders on the outside kept popping off when we lifted the cooler or pushed it up against something in a certain way. The butler tray isn’t quite the right size to fit snugly in the trolley handle, and so slides a lot when in place. We did find the internal dry basket and two bottle openers on the outside to be fairly useful though.
The Trailmate is featured with a pair of wheels that’ll never go flat because they’re made of rugged plastic. The thing about these wheels is that they’ll allow you to haul the cooler on any surface without any resistance and without getting stuck given the 10 inches clearance they offer. One more thing; if you go for the Trailmate Marine you’ll be getting non-marking wheels which might be something you’re interested in. The Trailmate Journey features an included dry food basket, storage compartment, fishing rod slots, and a massive interior space.